Use of Past Progressive

Past Progressive is used for actions in the past and focusses on the course or duration of the action.

• Action taking place at a certain moment in the past

  Being in the middle of doing something at a certain time in the past.

  Examples:

  At two o’clock, Carla was preparing the contract.
  Yesterday I was looking for Mister Miller’s phone number.

• Actions happening simultaneously

  Actions in the past happening at the same time (over a longer period of time).

  Examples:

  While Claire was preparing her presentation, Tom was showing the customer around.
  While Sarah was looking for the documents, I was keeping the customer on the line.

• Being in the middle of an action, when another action set in

  Action taking place over a longer period of time in the past when (suddenly) another (shorter) action set in. (see also: Simple Past)

  Beispiele:

  I was sitting in a meeting, when my mobile suddenly rang.
  When I came in, John was playing solitaire.

Signal Words of Past Progressive

when, while, as long as